In 2023, OpenAI’s ChatGPT became the second fastest-growing consumer application in history, reaching 100m monthly users in only two months. In the alternative data space, it seems like everyone is working towards building their own AI models or leveraging the technology for their own uses. Like most nascent technologies, it will take some time for solid legal and compliance norms to emerge around pertinent data collection, privacy and intellectual property issues. However, we are already seeing early signs of movement in the space, with cases being filed and regulatory attitudes starting to develop.

There are some clear compliance risks related to collecting data accessed through screen-scraping.

Exam priorities, advice and the role alternative data plays within the exam.

China's effort to control the information leaving its shores has escalated with the vigorous enforcement of laws and regulations targeting offshore data transfers. The endeavor has caused disruptions for data vendors with China-focused product offerings as they adapt to evolving compliance standards. However, despite the confusion, buyers can still take viable measures to mitigate risk, and as with any significant regulatory change, the adjustment period will eventually end.

While many important takeaways can be gleaned from the panel, two stand out...

As a riskier category of alternative data, transactional data's relationship to the consumer and financial spaces comes with a host of unique compliance considerations. We’ve examined transactional data vendor responses on our platform to highlight some surprising characteristics.

Not really. We do see a substantial decline in the number of new datasets paired with an increase in discontinuations, however...

The terms web-crawling and web-scraping are often used synonymously in the alternative data space. However, they are two distinct methods of gathering data. Understanding the differences between them can inform how buyers diligence vendors that source data through crawling, scraping, or a combination of the two.

Honestly, we don't know yet. AI is likely to impact data buyers and sellers across the board – not only in terms of compliance, but also with respect to commercial capabilities and governance.

Location data has long been considered a high-risk data category. Recently, it’s been at the center of several high-profile legal battles and regulatory actions involving issues of privacy and consent – most notably in the aftermath of Roe v. Wade being overturned in June 2022. In response, we’ve seen a marked decline in new location data products and a considerable increase in discontinuations.